Asian markets close mixed as trade deal cheer fades

POSITIVE economic data from the US and China struggled to keep sentiment afloat on Friday as trade deal exuberance largely wore off, with Asian equities closing the day mixed.

Markets that ended higher included Hong Kong, Japan and Australia. South Korea's KOSPI and China's Shanghai Composite Index ended flat; while the Shenzhen Composite Index slipped 0.3 per cent.

Singapore's Straits Times Index (STI) was among the indices that failed to build on the previous session's gains. It closed flat at 3,281.03 having gained just 3.03 points or 0.09 per cent. Over the course of the week, it advanced 0.8 per cent from last Friday's close of 3,255.95.